Winner to Receive Cash and Production Services to Help Them Complete Their Project
From the Heart Productions, the 501(c)3 non-profit which sponsors the Roy W. Dean Grants for indie filmmakers, has chosen the finalists for the Roy W. Dean Film Grant for Summer 2023. Twenty-four filmmakers will vie for the grant which is awarded to a film that is unique and that makes a contribution to society. The grant recipient will be awarded $3,500 cash and thousands more in donated production goods and services.
Roy W. Dean Grant for Summer 2023 Finalist: “Tuner”
“The submissions we received show an incredible depth of creativity, dedication, and passion,” said Carole Joyce, Director of the Roy W. Dean Grants. “The prospect of selecting one project as the winner is a formidable but thrilling challenge.”
As the Roy W. Dean Grant is accepts submissions internationally, submissions were received from many filmmakers outside the United States. Projects were received from Italy, Netherlands, South Africa, Egypt, Argentina, and Congo.
Along with the cash prize awarded by From the Heart Productions are donations from film industry professionals and companies. These include $500 in grip, lighting or expendables from Filmtools, $1295.00 Scholarship to Writers Boot Camp, Major discount on sound mixing from Jeff Alan from Alan Audio Works, 30% Discount by Jerry Deaton for Music Post Production Services at AudioKut, $600.00 for your Free Closed Captioning by Cineprosmedia, and more from many heartfelt donors.
The grant is open to documentaries, narrative features, short films, and web series. The winner is expected to be announced in November 2023.
Finalists for the Roy W. Dean Film Grant for Summer 2023 are:
| Title | Type | Filmmaker |
| “Evidence of Afterlife” | Documentary Feature | Robert Lyon |
| “Breakthrough” | Documentary Feature | Aaron Bear |
| “36 Seconds: Portrait of a Hate Crime” | Documentary Feature | Tarek Albaba |
| “We Swim Among Oceans” | Documentary Feature | Ruoyun Chen |
| “Touching the Sky” | Documentary Short | Tim Hedberg |
| “Trusted Sources” | Documentary Feature | Don Colacino |
| “Homele$$ Inc” | Documentary Feature | Remi Kessler |
| “Tuner” | Fiction Short | Radha Mehta |
| “The Facade” | Documentary Short | Tatiana Chekhova |
| “Overturned” | Fiction Short | Meredith Vivian |
| “Aimless” | Fiction Feature | Cyrus Richardson |
| “American House Witch” | Documentary Feature | Coriann Eden Bright |
| “Guns and Hoses” | Documentary Feature | Alex Gocke |
| “Revelations of Divine Love” | Fiction Feature | Caroline Golum |
| “First Light” | Documentary Feature | Nick Girard |
| “Planning to Turn the Tide” | Documentary Feature | James Schwab |
| “Reach Out” | Documentary Short | Menchie Caliboso |
| “After She Died” | Fiction Feature | Shivani Khattar |
| “With My Own Two Hands’ 2023 Film” | Documentary Short | Isabella Mudge |
| “Sweeter than Heaven” | TV, Web, or New Media Series | Jerod Willis |
| “Rebranding Peace” | Documentary Feature | CJ Crim |
| “Aloha Warriors” | Documentary Short | Chelsi de Cuba |
| “The Net Effect” | Documentary Feature | Myles Kramer |
| “Finding HAPPY” | Documentary Feature | Kelly King |
Each finalist is given the opportunity to post information on their contending film on the From the Heart Productions website. Filmmakers can include an image from the film, filmmaker info, and loglines. If they have available, filmmakers can include a link to their film’s website, Facebook page, or relevant social media connection.
About the Roy W. Dean Grant
Since its inception in 1992, the Roy W. Dean Grant has awarded over $2,000,000 in cash and donated film services to independent films. The grant is awarded to films budgeted under $500,000 that is unique and that make a contribution to society.
Offering four grants for filmmakers each year, The Roy W. Dean Grant has been an important lifeline for independent filmmakers helping them to get their projects started or finished. Without assistance from the grant, many excellent and important films may never have been made.
Past winners of the grant include 2021 Emmy winners Belly of the Beast and The Love Bugs , as well as Sundance Film Festival selection Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins, and acclaimed documentary Kusama-Infinity.
About From the Heart Productions
From The Heart Productions is a 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to helping filmmakers get their projects funded and made. Besides providing funding through the grant, they offer film fiscal sponsorship to filmmakers. In addition to personal guidance, free classes on fundraising and filmmaking, the program allows donations made to films to be tax deductible. From The Heart has helped independent filmmakers raise over $30 million through their fiscal sponsorship program.
President Carole Dean is the best-selling author of The Art of Film Funding: 2nd Edition, Alternative Financing Concepts and the new online class Learn Producing: The Ultimate Course for Indie Film Production.
